Multi-outlet power conditioners provide high purity electrical power to multiple electronic devices powered using a single wall outlet. Such devices often contain surge protection circuits for protecting consumer electronics, such as computers, televisions and other audio/visual equipment, from damage resulting from random power surges and voltage spikes. Power conditioners also typically contain filtering elements for reducing AC power line noise.
One shortcoming of conventional power conditioners is that they generally do not provide a visual indication of power conditions so that the user can determine if the electronic devices are receiving power at optimal voltage and current conditions. One attempt to overcome this problem is described in Lee et al., U.S. Pat. No. 6,456,091. Lee generally describes a power line conditioner having LED indicators for showing input current received by the power line conditioner from the wall outlet.
However, power conditioners are typically used to power multiple electrical devices, such as, separate audio, visual or computer devices, having different power requirements. While Lee generally describes a means for detecting and displaying input current from the wall outlet, it fails to provide an effective means for monitoring and displaying the voltage and current delivered to the separate outlets for each electrical device. Furthermore, Lee does not provide a means for measuring electrical current conditions after transmission through the circuitry of the power conditioner. It would therefore be highly desirable to provide a power conditioner having the capability of monitoring and displaying voltage and current actually received by the separate electronic devices.
The present invention provides these and other advantages over conventional power line conditioners.